Chapter 288: Into the temple

Chapter 288: Into the temple

Mason ran behind Streak, bow at the ready. The huge wolf filled half the wide corridor, his head practically as high as Mason's. He felt Mason's fear for his friends, his knowledge of danger in multiple directions, his eagerness for a fight.

They were of like-mind now. Their senses had told them enough—this place was hostile and filled with evil things. There was nothing left but the hunt.

More robed figures emerged. These came in a pack of at least nine, three to a row, shoulder to shoulder across the corridor. Their mouths opened in fangs, clawed hands raising from beneath their robes as they hissed and charged.

Mason almost groaned with pleasure at the feel as his Elven bow as he drew. His arms felt the moment of strain, then he released his first shot, the string humming with force. He knew the moment he released that he'd struck. His arrow took the first in the eye.

Streak leapt straight into the disrupted pack. His huge body smashed through the center, the creatures trying to grab and claw at him but unable to resist the speed and weight.

Mason banished his bow and followed with his Claws. Streak had clamped his jaw on one of the creature's throats, tearing back and forth and spraying blood as three or four others tried to get him off. Then Mason arrived.

He slashed both blades downward, cutting through one creature's shoulder and down into its chest, slicing another's arm off entirely. The creatures didn't seem used to pain. They shrieked and howled in fear and agony, seemingly surprised to see their own blood and death arrive so swiftly.

Mason and Streak surprised them a little more.

Neither worried much about their own defence, ignoring claw marks and the occasional bite as they slashed, thrashed, and chewed their way through the pack of creatures.

Then only one was left, limbs cut and broken as it stared up with hate and panic from the ground.

"What is this place?" Mason asked as he activated Shared Pain and let Streak's minor wounds start balancing to him. He hardly even winced now as he felt his flesh open in several places. The creature was staring at him in horror as it coughed blood.

"It's you..." it said, as if in recognition. "How..." it sputtered blood, then laughed. "Doesn't matter. You failed. They're dead. They're all dead. You failed."

Mason felt his hand clench around the handle of a Claw. His patience was running out very swiftly.

"Who's dead? Where are the others?"

"Gone." The thing cackled. "Long gone. Go. See for yourself."

Mason probably should have asked more questions. Instead he hacked off the creature's head.

Whatever concern he felt for Rebecca and the others he pushed down somewhere they wouldn't interfere. Would the game simply kill his friends as part of its 'story'? He didn't think so. It often wasn't fair, and sometimes fucked up or broke its own rules. But he refused to believe it would just kill a bunch of players with no chance.

Which meant the creature was lying or talking about something else. Mason was here to save the ‘nephalai’. Is that what it meant? But how could he save them if they were already dead?

At least in the absence of any better ideas, that was his plan.

He checked the room quickly for anything useful, then clicked for Streak, and ran towards the next.

* * *

Phuong opened his eyes to near darkness and the scent of dust. He looked for his friends in silence, touching the stone walls and checking the floors for traps or damage as his vision slowly adjusted. He was alone, which likely meant all of them were alone.

His first thought was clear: he had to find Alex.

Everyone else was strong enough to handle themselves, particularly Carl and Mason. Rebecca was tough and as long as she had mana could probably kill anything that wasn't too terrifying. Seamus could certainly kill what he needed to, and anyway it was Seamus so Phuong didn't much care.

But Alex was a 'support'. His powers were incredible and vital, but by himself he was vulnerable. And he was Phuong's friend.

From a lifetime of careful habit, Phuong crept through the halls searching for danger. He knocked on the walls for secret passages, sliding and tapping his feet on the tiles and their grooves, looking for any change. But he soon picked up his pace.

What would the others do? Mason and Carl would certainly start moving and searching for the others. Would Alex simply stay where he was?

It could be they had to all get past some individual trial and simply 'waiting' wasn't an option. Surely the 'game' wouldn't punish a support class too harshly? Provide them with the same test they might design for someone like Mason or Phuong with no chance of assistance?

He grit his teeth, fearing it might. But all he could do was hurry and find the others.

Soon he found strange robed figures wandering the halls or chanting in rooms. He waited and flattened against the stone, slipping past them and glancing in the rooms before moving on.

At the end of a long hall he found stairs going both up and down, and clenched his grip on his sword. Apparently this place was large. He'd seen no obvious sign or instruction on where to go, though it was possible he missed something, or should try to kill or interrogate some of the robed men.

Ultimately, he decided to go down.

'RoboGod' seemed to have a preference to make bosses at the top of towers or trees. He assumed this place would be the same. With a quick inspection for pressure plates or strange grooves in the roof or walls, Phuong crept down the stairs with sword at the ready.

That's when he heard the scream. It was clearly inhuman—a kind of monstrous howl somewhere between suffering and rage. A small symbol flared to life on the top of the stairs, and Phuong winced.

So, it had been some kind of trap after all. Merely a trap you couldn't see or touch without magic.

Whether the creature howling was now coming for him or simply on the loose for anyone, he didn't know. But he saw no reason to change his strategy.

With a last glance back into the gloom, Phuong hurried down the steps.